


The Wish I Wish Tonight

by backtoblack101



Series: The One Absolutely Beautiful Thing [2]
Category: Agent Carter (TV), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Adoption, Babies, Domestic, Domestic Fluff, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-11
Updated: 2015-04-11
Packaged: 2018-03-22 10:07:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,930
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3724885
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/backtoblack101/pseuds/backtoblack101
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A follow-up to "Snips and Snails and Sugar and Spice" in which Angie and Peggy are determine to find a way to start a family.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Wish I Wish Tonight

**Author's Note:**

> Okay so from the end of WW2 up until the 70s/80s there was a HUGE increase in the rate of pre-marital pregnancies because after the war there was liberalization of sexuality buuuut basically no access to birth control, and as far as these unmarried women were concern the only option for their child was to be adopted or put into care. This, of course, in turn led to a huge increase in the rate of adoption in the US which became known as the Baby Scoop Era. During this time it was also fairly common for women to adopt children as single parents but raise those children with other women. Y'know, just two gal pals raisin' kids together, totally not gay at all.
> 
> But yea, that's just a little boring background to this whole thing. 
> 
> Also the title comes from another nursery rhyme: 
> 
> Star light, star bright,  
> The first star I see tonight;  
> I wish I may, I wish I might,  
> Have the wish I wish tonight.

Angie had been different since they’d verbalise their longing for children they could never have but Peggy never mentioned it. She couldn’t mention it you see, because if she mentioned it she’d be admitting to something having changed between them and, well, once that can of worms is opened there’s no way to put a lid back on it. Her mother always said not to poke holes in an already sinking ship so Peggy didn’t. Instead she pretended not to notice the look of longing in her partner’s eyes when they passed kids in the street. Instead she turned a blind eye to the way Angie stared at her from afar when she played with their nieces and nephews.

She pretended everything was fine for a full year; would have for the rest of her life if she’d been given the chance.

She was in her office late, hunched over field reports from Russia, when she heard the squeak of the door hinges and the soft padding of feet across the oak floor. She knew who it was and a second later her presumption was confirmed when Angie sat on Peggy’s desk, just to the left of her chair.

“Can you leave work for the night?” Her voice was quite and sombre. “There’s somethin’ I wanna talk to you about.”

And Peggy knew that was it. Knew that the can of worms had been opened and knew the ship had sunk. She’d known it all along if she was being honest with herself, though she’d already lost Steve and thought maybe if she tried hard enough she’d never lose Angie.

She felt tears stinging in the corners of her eyes. “Okay,” she nodded, thanking her stiff upper lip for how firm and reassured she sounded in spite of the tears rolling down her cheeks.

Angie didn’t notice though, Peggy made sure she didn’t notice as she hopped off the desk and led the way into the living room. She wiped her eyes quickly before Angie sat on the couch and patted it for Peggy to join her – she wasn’t quick enough though, she’d never been quick enough for Angie’s sixth sense for knowing when she was upset.

“You’re crying.” It was a statement rather than a question.

“I’m sorry.” Peggy wiped her eyes again, still standing dumbly in front of her partner.

“Why?” Angie stood now, stepped right into Peggy’s personal space, and took both her partner’s hands in her own to squeeze. “Peg what’s the matter?”

Peggy scoffed. “What’s the matter is that I know what you’re about to say.”

“Uh…” Angie’s brow creased. “I don’t think you do Peg.” Then she laughed; a small, nervous sound from the back of her throat. “At least I hope you don’t if that’s your reaction.”

Now it was Peggy’s turn for confusion. “What?”

“Well… I actually had a whole speech planned out for this, though since you’re bein’ such a drama queen.” Angie shrugged in an attempt to shake off her nerves. “I think we should adopt a kid.”

Angie’s eyes went wide in excitement, though not nearly as wide as Peggy’s. “Oh!” She pulled one of her hands away from Angie’s to grab her chest, not realising until now how fast her heart had been beating. “Adopt… you want to adopt.” She could have laughed at how stupid she’d been, though instead she just cried harder.

“Yea…” Angie nodded. “Though you cryin’ ain’t makin’ me feel too good about the idea.”

“No, no.” Now she was laughing too, and waving a hand in Angie’s face. “These are happy tears, I swear.” She tried to wipe them away, to recompose herself, though nothing seemed to work, and honestly it didn’t seem to matter. “I thought you were going to leave me,” she admitted. “I thought you were going to tell me you’d realised you wanted a child of your own and that being with someone that couldn’t give you that was proving too great a sacrifice,” she explained, her laughter subsiding along with her tears until she was left with nothing but wet cheeks and a broad grin. “Angie, darling, adopting sounds marvellous.”

“Well it’s better than whatever idea you had anyway,” Angie teased. “Me, leavin’ you, as if.” Then she kissed her; hard and fast and reassuring, pushing her at the same time, out the door and towards their room.

-.-.-.-

“You know,” Peggy hummed absently as she drew shapes with her fingertip into Angie’s back. “As much as I love your idea to adopt, I’m not quite sure I follow.”

Angie lifted her head out of the pillow to look at her. Peggy was lying out next to her, turned towards her and propped up on one elbow, the bed sheets bunched at her waist leaving her bare chest fully exposed for Angie’s viewing pleasure. Conversely Angie had chosen to lie on her stomach, her hands tucked under the pillow she’d previously been breathing into while she’d tried to catch her breath.

“What’s not to follow?” She felt warm and sticky and content while Peggy’s finger ran up the length of her spine to her neck then back down to the dip of her ass where her progress was hindered by the bed linen.

“The legal side of it I suppose.” Peggy didn’t meet her eye as she instead followed the path of her roaming finger. “I mean obviously we can’t get married and adopt as a couple, and I know women can adopt by themselves, but if either of us were to be screened for eligibility they’d find out we were living together and well…” she trailed off with a half-hearted shrug.

“Yea but here’s the thing.” Angie flipped herself quickly and sat up in the bed, ready to launch into the story that complimented her answer to Peggy’s question. “So y’know my cousin Lorna?”

“The one with the big ears?” Peggy felt a little guilty distinguishing Angie’s relatives like this, though they were her most defining feature.

“Yea, yea, yea, could catch radio signal for miles with them.” Angie failed to share in her girlfriend’s guilt. “Well her husband’s , cousin’s, daughter’s, friend’s, aunt,” Angie rattled off the connection without hesitation while Peggy’s brain tripped over itself trying to keep up. “Well she knows these gals, livin’ the same way we’re livin’ and a year ago they adopted a lil guy, named him Adam.” Angie’s eyes shone with excitement at the mere thought. “I mean o’course only one of ‘em’s down as his Ma on the papers an’ all that… though stuff like that’s all technical really.”

Peggy nodded slowly, mulling over all that Angie had said. “You’d need to be the one officially adopting them. My lack of American citizenship would only slow things down.”

“That and the fact you couldn’t really put anything down for occupation,” Angie added – SHIELD was all still very hush, hush after all.

“There is that,” Peggy agreed, nodding again and reaching out at the same time to trace the arch of Angie’s hip with calloused fingertips.

For a while Angie just watched Peggy’s hand floating over her skin, feeling light tingles coiling in her stomach at the ticklish sensation, and watching the goose-bumps break out in the wake of Peggy’s fingers.  She never said it, but she loved that even after six years together Peggy couldn’t keep her hands off her unless she had to. In public her partner had no problem keeping a respectable distance between them, though the second they were behind closed doors they were almost always in constant contact. It didn’t have to be a sexual way either – not that Peggy didn’t love pinning Angie against a wall, desk, or door and kissing her senseless. More often than not though they could be sitting together reading in the evening and Peggy’s hand would find Angie’s, or if they were resting in the sitting room Peggy’s fingers would brush the curls out of Angie’s hair. Even now there was nothing sexual about Peggy’s touch, even in their mutual state of undress, it was simply Peggy’s way of anchoring them together; reminding Angie she was there, and reminding herself Angie wouldn’t leave.

“We’re doin’ this then?” Angie asked after a quiet moment. “We’re really gonna try and do this?”

“Peggy’s hand stilled against Angie’s hip. “We are,” she whispered, a smile curling at the corners of her lips. “We’re going to have a family.”

-.-.-.-

“We can’t adopt through an agency darling,” Peggy reminded her partner, ignoring the pout she received from across the kitchen table.

In an ideal world of course it would be a new-born they would adopt, though Peggy was all too aware that involved finding an expecting mother willing to hand over her child to a ‘single’ woman living with another woman; not a likely occurrence, all things considered.

“Ma always said where there’s a will there’s a way.” While Peggy had resigned herself to the fact they would have to adopt a child that was slightly older Angie was having more difficulty coming to terms with it.

“Yes, but it could be years before our file is even glanced at.” There were so many married couples waiting to adopt there was no way an expecting mother would consider handing her child off to them. “A child is something we want now, not ten years down the line.” She could tell from the way Angie’s pout fell away from her face to be replaced with a small frown that her point had been made.

“I know,” Angie sighed after a moment. “I know I just…” She paused, letting the sentence mull over in her head for just a moment. “Worry… I worry they won’t love us like we’re their Ma because they’ve not known us our whole lives, y’know? I worry it won’t feel right and…” she paused and a look of guilt flashed briefly across her face. “What if I love ‘em different as well? What if they never feel like my kid? What if they grow up hatin’ me because I wasn’t able to love ‘em like a Ma should love their kid?”

Peggy reached across the table slowly and picked up Angie’s hand in her own, squeezing it gently while she spoke. “No child of ours will ever grow up feeling unloved.” Although it sounded like a promise Peggy meant it as a statement of fact. “Your heart is so big Angie, so full of love, and there’s not a doubt in my mind that you will love our children with every ounce of your being, no matter how old they are when they come into our lives.” She gave her partners hand a second squeeze then, smiling when the faintest shadow of a smile passed across Angie’s face.

-.-.-.-

The Children’s Aid Society office was small, cramped, and reminded Peggy of the old SSR offices except without quite as much hustle. Not that she’d known what to expect really; it’s not like they kept the children in the offices so there was of course no need for unnecessary colour or brightness. This was a place of business and the thought made Peggy’s gut twist as her and Angie were led to a desk at the back of the room; she’d always imagined having a child to be a lot more magical than this.

They took their seats across from a woman perhaps a few years older than them, her eyes harshly magnified by her thick rimmed glasses. “Hi there.” Her tone was friendly yet professional. “Which one of you ladies is Miss Angela Martinelli?”

“That’d be me.” Angie gave her a fidgety half wave before pinning her hands awkwardly at her side; apparently she’d read somewhere that people that gesture a lot in interviews don’t do as well as people that don’t and had since decided it was important to stay as still as possible in this and all subsequent meetings.

“Lovely to meet you.” The woman reached across the table and took one of Angie’s hands in a quick handshake. “My name’s Laura, and I’ll be dealing with you throughout this process,” she explained, turning then to face Peggy. “And I take it you’re the moral support here today?”

Peggy had worried there’d be too many awkward questions asked about her presence and had almost refused to come at all except that aside from everything else she really was Angie’s moral support today, her partner having been too nervous to come to the meeting alone.

“Yes.” Peggy offered her hand along with a smile. “Angie’s being such a dear and allowing me to stay with her while I find my feet in New York so I thought I’d return the favour.” They’d had their cover story planned out in fine detail for weeks and Peggy’s English accent really helped sell the whole thing.

“Oh, well ain’t that swell.” Laura seemed genuinely impressed by Angie’s thoughtfulness in helping her friend out. “I hope this doesn’t mean bedroom space will be an issue when welcoming in your new son or daughter though?” She added then.

“Oh no,” Angie waved off the comment, not realising until mid-wave it was going to be harder than she thought to keep her hands at her side. “I live in a nice big town house outside the city. My uncle left it to me when he passed away.” The pair had laughed manically when creating this layer of their lie, both imagining the look on Howards face if he were to ever find out he was playing the part of Angie’s dead uncle. “Made his money in silk stockin’s before the war, had a great big place to show for it an’ a soft spot for his favourite niece.”

“Oh, sounds lovely, I can’t wait to see it!” Laura replied, seeming satisfied with Angie’s answer. “Before all that though we need to get down to business,” she added, pulling a file towards her and taking out a three paged form. “So I’m just going to ask you a few questions, nothing to worry about, I just wanna get to know you better, make sure that when the time does come we’re able to fit you with a kid that’ll thrive in the environment you provide,” she explained, and Peggy had to admit she was doing an impressive job of dancing around what this actually was; a screening for eligibility.

“Can’t wait.” Peggy could see the nervousness creeping into Angie’s posture, from the way her back straightened to the way her chin jutted out ever so slightly.

“Great!” Laura glanced down at the first question on the form. “Now you’re adopting as a single mother, is that correct?”

“Yes,” Angie nodded. “I mean I hope to meet the right fella someday, it just ain’t happenin’ quick enough for my likin’,” She added, and Peggy noticed right away that Laura seemed to appreciate this elaboration on her answer.

“Okay, and is it a boy or a girl you’re looking to adopt?” Laura continued, scribbling down notes as she spoke.

“Either.” Angie shrugged and snuck a sideward glance at Peggy, neither of them ever having mentioned wanting one over the other.

“Okay,” Laura nodded. “And would you be open to adopting more than one child to prevent siblings from being separated?”

“Oh yea,” Angie nodded enthusiastically. “Couldn’t imagine growin’ up without my brothers and sisters, could never do it to my own kid, y’know.” Again Peggy noted Laura’s subtle approval of the answer.

“I see.” She glanced up then from the file in front of her to flash Angie a quick smile. “Well now that those first few questions are over us I’m just going to run through a few more personal things as well as stuff to do with your finances and your career,” she explained. “Then once that’s all out of the way you ladies are free to leave and you should be called within the next week, how does that sound?”

Angie smiled, bright and enthusiastic in spite of the tension still resting in her shoulders. “Sounds swell.”

-.-.-.-

“This mine or yours Peg?” Angie held up a plain blue shirt for Peggy to take a look at.

“Mine… I think?” Peggy shrugged. “Though you wear it more often anyway and I doubt they’ll be looking that closely at our lives so you keep it.”

They’d passed the initial screening, and on the phone call they’d received three days after leaving the office they’d been told they had two days to prepare for the inspection of their living quarters. That meant two days for Peggy and Angie to make it look like they hadn’t been sharing the one room for the past six years, something that as proving a much greater feat than either had anticipated.

It was easy to overlook how interlinked their lives had become, yet even something as simple as separating their wardrobes so Peggy could move into the spare room for the next day and a half was proving a mammoth task. Even separating toiletries had proven to be near impossible and had resulted in them flipping a coin to see who got to keep the moisturiser in their bathroom for the next few days.

“Nah,” Angie threw it onto the bed along with the rest of Peggy’s clothes. “Don’t wanna risk it.”

“If you insist.” Peggy returned to separating out their stockings until a thought hit her. “Did you remember to hide those photos of us along the mantle in the living room?”

“Yea, I have ‘em tucked behind some of the books on the bookcase,” Angie reassured her. “You get the picture in the kitchen?”

“Mhm,” Peggy nodded absently. “And those ridiculous ‘hers and hers’ towels Howard gave us for every damn bathroom in the house.” The fact he’d spent god only knows how much getting the gold lettering hand stitched onto eight sets of bath towels just to see the look of distain on Peggy’s face still annoyed her; the man had more money than sense.

“Oh,” Angie gushed, the mention of the towels having given her an idea. “Maybe when the kid comes along we can get him to make up some towels with their name on it. Wouldn’t that be cute?”

Peggy scrunched her nose. “I don’t particularly find the idea of Howard having any influence in our child’s life to be a cute one. One minute it’s monochrome bath towels the next minute we have a five year old walking around in a silk bathrobe smoking a cigar and blowing things up.”

“They’d have a little mini moustache painted on too,” Angie teased, laughing when Peggy shuddered.

-.-.-.-

They’d decided it would be best for Peggy to duck out for the day while Laura came over to view the house, not wanting her to see the pair spending too much time together. At first Angie had protested the decision, insisting she wouldn’t know what to do if Laura asked any awkward questions, though she hadn’t taken much convincing once Peggy had reminded her of the likelihood of them getting a child if the state knew how they were living. Plus the extra hours in the office meant Peggy was able to get a few steps ahead on the Argentina case one of her teams was running, leaving her confident about her meeting with the president in Washington in a week.

Not that it hadn’t been tough sitting at her desk all day only half listening to the reports people were giving her while she ran through their house one more time in her head, mentally double checking every photo frame and trinket that would have hinted at them being in a relationship. It’d be worth it though; if they got a child all this awkward secrecy would be worth it a thousand times over.

“How’d it go?” She hadn’t even shed her jacket or shoes when she’d come into the house, instead making a bee-line for the living room, where she found Angie lounging on the sofa listening to the radio with dog-Jarvis curled up on the cushion next to her.

“Peg you’re home!” Angie watched her partner round the couch and lift dog-Jarvis into her lap so she could take the seat next to Angie that he’d previously occupied. “It was good. I mean I think it was good an’ I hope it was good. She seemed happy with the place. ‘Least I think she liked it – smiled an awful lot an’ nodded ‘n all. When I showed her the room I – well I mean we – were thinkin’ of havin’ for the kid she seemed real impressed. Loved the big windows an’ all.”

The room they’d agreed on was fabulous. Huge crescent windows on two walls looking out over the garden at the back of the property, with everything decorated in white satin for the time being, though they’d agreed to go with a green colour scheme once they were sure they’d have a child to adopt.

“That sounds excellent darling.” Peggy reached over and took Angie’s hand in her own, squeezing it lightly.

“I know, I know, it was kinda crazy how well it went, y’know.” The smile on Angie’s face almost split her cheeks. “The only bad thing she asked is if this lil fella would be temperamental ‘round kids,” she added, reaching with her free hand to scratch dog-Jarvis behind the ear. “Though I told her that’d never be a problem. He’s the most placid guy I’ve come across in all my years havin’ dogs.”

Peggy snorted. “Quite possibly because you’ve never had a dog before.”

“Hey now, ain’t my fault she didn’t ask that.” Angie shrugged. “Besides, he really is a timid lil fella, just like his name sake.”

“I’m sure Mr. Jarvis will be thrilled to hear that,” Peggy chuckled. “Not that he’s what we should be discussing right now,” she added then; as much as Jarvis’ contempt of their choice of dog name endlessly amused Peggy and Angie, it wasn’t the most important topic right now. “Did she say anything about when we’d be hearing from them again?”

Angie nodded. “Tha’s the best part Peg. She was sayin’ there’s jus’ so many kids being put into care these past few years they can barely keep up. She said back before the war it coulda been up to a year before we heard anythin’ back from ‘em, though with the way things are these days it should only be a month or two before everythin’s sorted.”

Peggy pulled her perfectly painted lower lip between her teeth and chewed it softly for a moment, considering what Angie had just said. “We’re really going to have a child.”

“Yea,” Angie agreed, her excitement mellowing out into a content kind of glow. “We’re gonna be parents.”

-.-.-.-

It was a month and a half later when Angie got a call from Laura to inform them they could start looking at children, and Angie had skipped out of rehearsals for her latest play early to run over to the agency and pick up the files that her and Peggy were currently pouring over, a glass of wine each in hand as they read the little information provided for them about each child.

“It’s sad really,” Peggy hummed, passing the file she’d just read into Angie’s hands.

“What is?” Angie traced the grainy picture of a four month old baby boy that was attached to the file with a paper-clip.

“There’s just so many of them,” Peggy elaborated, picking up the fifth file in the stack. “And so little written about them, you know.” All that was provided was basic information pertaining to the child’s physical characteristics and general health; some files didn’t even provide birth surnames.

Angie hummed in agreement, setting the file aside. “Makes y’wanna take all of ‘em.” She accepted another file from Peggy. “Lord knows we have the room.”

-.-.-.-

It was another week before they met Laura again, this time outside a large building that reminded Peggy of the dormitory houses she’d stayed in during boarding school. This wasn’t St Martin-in-the-Fields High School for Girls though; this was the Children’s Aid Society Orphanage and in just under an hour they’d be walking back out the doors with their daughter.

Meredith had been one of the last files they’d looked at and both had instantly felt a draw towards the nine month old girl staring up at them from the picture attached to her file. A little under-weight for her age, but aside from that there were no pre-existing medical conditions to worry about and Angie had called Laura back the next morning with news they’d made their choice.

Now that choice seemed more promising than ever as they followed Laura down a long clinical looking corridor towards the office, only half listening to what the caseworker was telling them over her shoulder as she led the way.

“… Of course we may need to discuss the potential of taking Meredith back to visit her brother on occasion,” she was saying, the sentence suddenly pulling both Peggy and Angie out of their trance. “It’s just if possible we like to keep siblings in contact and-“

“Wait,” Angie interrupted. “We were never told Meredith had a sibling?”

“Oh…” Laura stopped in her tracks, turning back to face both women. “It wasn’t in her file?”

“No,” Peggy replied cautiously. “And she didn’t have a surname either so we just presumed she was dumped here. We didn’t think she had any family at all?” She knew it was more Angie’s place to be saying this, but she’d mentioned on the walk into the building she’d helped Angie look through the files, so her knowledge of them wasn’t really a cause for concern.

“Well she was,” Laura confirmed. “Well, they were. Her brother’s a year older than her, not much older than a year himself when they were abandoned. Timid little fellow really.”

“Can we meet him too?” Angie asked all of a sudden, startling both Peggy and Laura with her question. “I mean…” she added awkwardly, glancing quickly at Peggy. “Our- uh, my,” she corrected herself quickly. “Heart is set on Meredith and if that means taking in her brother too well it ain’t like I’m short on space.” She shot another quick glance at Peggy, who just gave a short, reassuring nod.

“Right,” Laura nodded happily. “Well if you both want to take a seat in the office I’ll get both children now.”

She motioned to the door on her left and Angie and Peggy filed into the small room, sitting next to one another in rickety wooden chairs that looked as if they were being held together by nothing but splinters.

“You mad?” Angie whispered once Laura left. “I kinda jumped the gun a little.”

“A little,” Peggy agreed just as quietly. “Though I could never imagine growing up without your sibling, separating them isn’t something I’d like on my conscience,” she added, reaching out quickly and squeezing Angie’s hand. “Plus, you’d never have stopped at one child anyway.”

Angie chuckled softly. “That is true.”

Peggy pulled her hand away then, and a second later they heart footsteps approaching in the corridor, one set of steps more shuffled than the other precise clacking of heels. Then Laura was back in the room, holding Meredith against her chest with one arm while the other was wrapped around the hand of a small boy with a mop of untidy golden brown hair atop his head, a few shades lighter than the strands of brunette hair covering Meredith’s.  His eyes were a deep muddy brown too, just like Meredith, and the hand that wasn’t holding Laura’s was wrapped firmly around a dirty rag that trailed along the ground after him.

“Angie, Peggy this,” Laura let go of the boys hand and prompted him to move forward. “Is Steve.”

“Steve…” Peggy repeated under her breath, and Angie didn’t need to look at her to know her eyes were filling with tears.

“Hey Steve,” Angie greeted softly, crouching down out of her chair to get on the same level as the two year old. “You wanna go on an adventure?”

Steve nodded, glancing quickly between Angie and a teary-eyed Peggy before replying. “… Yea.”

“Alright then.” Angie looked back at Peggy who nodded slowly, her lips splitting into a toothy grin as she discretely wiped her eyes. “Whadya say you and your sister come home with me and my friend Peggy, see how you like it?”

The young boy mulled over the idea for a moment, though when he spoke his question was directed at Peggy rather than Angie. “Can _lankey_ come?” He held up the blanket in his hand to indicate what he was talking about.

“Of course darling!” Peggy beamed, joining Angie in crouching next to the young boy. “You and Meredith and _lankey_ can come and stay for as long as you want.”

“Are you sure that’s okay?” Laura asked then, drawing Angie and Peggy’s attention away from Steve. “I didn’t realise you didn’t know about him, and now this is all a little thrust on you.”

“It’s fine,” Angie insisted. “There’s plenty of room, an’ I’m sure he won’t mind stayin’ in one of the spare rooms until I get someone in to decorate a room for him, ain’t that right buddy?” she added, laughing when Steve nodded enthusiastically even though she was sure he didn’t quite understand the exchange going on.

“Well in that case I’ll get all the paperwork and you...” Laura passed Meredith into Angie’s hands and Angie instantly pulled her new daughter close to her chest. “…Can get to know your new family.”

-.-.-.-

_2 Years Later:_

Peggy could hear commotion from the drawing room before she even got the front door closed behind her, and subconsciously her entire face broke out into a grin as she shrugged off her jacket and toed off her shoes. She’d been working late the past couple of nights and by the time she’d gotten home the kids were always already asleep so tonight, seeing as it was Friday and all, she’d decided to sneak out of the office at six, managing to dodge both Daniel and Howard on her way to the exit. Realistically she should have taken some of the work home with her, though her guilt quickly receded into nothingness when she wandered down the hall and into the drawing room.

“Kitty!” Steve shouted; ignoring his mother’s presence entirely and continuing with the game he was playing with his sister.

“Meow,” Meredith called back from the opposite side of the room, her head popping up from behind the arm of a sofa as she spoke.

“Kitty!” Steve called again, his voice bubbling with laughter.

“Meow!” This time when Meredith spoke she ran at her older brother, both of them now chanting “meow” until they dissolved into hysterical laughter.

Peggy shook her head and stepped around the children, instead approaching Angie, who was curled up in an armchair with dog-Jarvis in her lap and her latest script in her hand. “How long have they been doing that?”

“Are you askin’ how long they’ve been playin’ that game, or how long they’ve been givin’ me a migraine?” Angie replied without looking up from her script.

“…Both?” Peggy replied hesitantly, lowering herself onto the arm of the chair and reaching down to scratch dog-Jarvis behind the ear.

Angie finally looked away from the pages in front of her to shoot Peggy a half smile. “Well Howard was over earlier with Tony, and not that I can prove anythin’, though I’d bet my life he fed the three of ‘em sugar while I wasn’t lookin’.”

“Ah,” Peggy sighed. “So needless to say you’ve had an interesting day then?” She stopped paying attention to dog-Jarvis, instead wrapping her arm around Angie’s shoulder and running her fingers gently over her upper arm, exposed by the short sleeved summer dress she was wearing.

“That’s one way to pit it,” Angie hummed, placing her script down on the end table next to the chair and leaning back to look at Peggy. “Glad you’re home early though.” She reached up and stroked Peggy’s cheek gently, running her index finger down along her cheek bone then across the bow of her lip.

“I bet you are,” Peggy agreed, trying to ignore the tingle left in the wake of Angie’s finger and the heat that coiled in her stomach at the intensity of Angie’s gaze. “It means I’ve to try and bath these two rascals later.”

“I might even help if you’re lucky,” Angie promised, her fingers now running across Peggy’s chin and jaw until her hand was able to curl at the back of her neck. “I’ve hardly seen you all week an’ the quicker we get tweedledum and tweedledee to bed the sooner we get to catch up.”

Peggy liked the idea of that very much; liked it even more when Angie used the hand curled around her neck to pull her in for a kiss, a short preview of what would be in store for her later. Unfortunately however it was an extremely short preview, for the second Angie turned her body for a better angle dog-Jarvis was roused from his nap with a deafening yelp that caught the attention of Steve and Meredith, who up until this point had still been rolling about on the floor. Once they caught sight of what their parents were doing however Angie and Peggy were met with a chorus of ew’s and grosses’ that forced them to end the kiss prematurely.

“You think that’s gross?” Angie challenged, laughing when both Steve and Meredith nodded vigorously.

“All kissing’s gross,” Steve explained as if it should be obvious.

“Even when we kiss you goodnight?” Angie’s eyebrow shot up, watching as her son mulled over her comment.

“No,” he conceded eventually. “I guess all kissing isn’t gross.”

Peggy hummed her approval at her son’s words. “And, at least your mama kisses me hello when I get home from work, you little monkey’s haven’t said anything to me since I got in.”

Both Steve and Meredith at once realised the err of their ways, with Meredith being the first to run to her mother’s side. “We’re not monkeys anymore mum,” she explained, even as Peggy leaned over to scoop the three year old into her arms. “We’re cat’s now.”

“Ah, how silly of me,” Peggy laughed, lowering Meredith into her lap and wrapping her arms around her. “I can’t have seen your whiskers properly.”

Meredith giggled at this. “No, I’m only a pretend cat… I don’t really have whiskers,” she explained, pulling back from her mother’s embrace to point at her cheeks as means of proof.

“Yea mum, we were just make-believe cats,” Steve added, having removed dog-Jarvis from Angie’s lap so he could climb into it instead. “And the couches were trees and stuff.”

“Not real cats, eh,” Peggy feigned shock, causing both her children to giggle. “Well I must say you’re truly superb actors because you had me fooled.”

“You think I’m a good actor Ma?” Steve’s question was directed at Angie, trusting her instinct on acting more than Peggy’s.

 “Best I’ve ever seen,” Angie promised, running her hand through her son’s thick mop of hair. “Both of you,” she added, reaching out and pressing her middle finger lightly against Meredith’s nose. “Though unfortunately even the best actors need baths,” she added then, and her and Peggy barely managed to tighten their grasp on the children before they were attempting to wriggle to freedom.

**Author's Note:**

> Okay so yea, i couldn't resist Peggy having a kid called Steve... w/e.
> 
> Also the idea for the whole "kitty" "meow" thing comes from the fact that I live above a creche, and a few days ago i was doing my hair before college and i could hear these two kids downstairs yelling that at one another and laughing (bc I live in a building with the thinnest floors in the world, like it's probably fucking unsafe) and it just sounded cute.
> 
> Just a quick disclaimer: I know very little about the adoption process! I mean I did as much googling as I could, and I know a little because my aunt fosters kids but my knowledge was still pretty limited especially because it's the 1940s so things were probably different...


End file.
